


marichat may 2020

by sanj_sanj, YesImLyra



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng Fluff, Episode: s03 Chat Blanc, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Marichat | Adrien Agreste as Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Mouse Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Rabbit Alix Kubdel | Bunnyx, Snake Luka Couffaine | Viperion, viperion vs. chat noir
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-02
Updated: 2020-05-09
Packaged: 2021-03-01 17:15:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,121
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23970652
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sanj_sanj/pseuds/sanj_sanj, https://archiveofourown.org/users/YesImLyra/pseuds/YesImLyra
Summary: a series of thirty-one connected ficlets for marichat may 2020
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug
Comments: 4
Kudos: 50





	1. witch au

**Author's Note:**

> i realize i'm a day late i'm sorryyyyy  
> that'll be fixed.... at some point  
> i promise it's still very exciting

“Why are we doing a witch photoshoot? Isn’t the point for the clothes to look pretty - not ugly and scary?” a photographer cried to his colleague.

“Oh, hush. You’re just mad the girl model you chose couldn’t make it. I know you have some vendetta against Camille.” He cheekily replied.

“Ugh, every pose I put her in - it just looks wrong. Something about her is just not photogenic; she must just be plain ugly.”

“That’s totally mean. Jeez, be nice to the poor girl. The modeling industry is a nasty place. Whatever, it’s time for the shoot - please try not to antagonize poor Camille.” The two went off to do their job, unaware of the girl listening to their conversation. 

Camille was dressed up in a long flowing black gown decorated with loops and swirls with a sweetheart neckline. She was wearing sleek black gloves and black boots and a pointy velvet hat. Her outfit screamed fierce and brave, but her face betrayed her. Tears leaked down her face as she collapsed onto a bench. 

“H-he thinks I’m ugly? D-Does everyone think that?” Her tears turned into full-blown sobbing as she thought of the effect this would have on her career.  _ Oh no oh no oh no. How can I be a model if I’m ugly? I-I’ll lose my job, my dreams, everything. I’ll be out on the street in a heartbeat, all because of that-that  _ monster!

All of a sudden her thoughts fled and were replaced with an overwhelming calm. The voice in her head blocked out all else and she welcomed it, happy for a distraction. An akuma had fluttered into her witch hat.

“Enchantress, I am Hawkmoth. Insulted by your colleagues and afraid of being ripped out of the fashion world… I give you the power to turn others ugly. Make them suffer as you did. And in return, bring me back Ladybug and Chat Noir’s miraculouses.”

Camille stood up, a look of concentration passing over her features. “Yes, Hawkmoth.”

Camille transformed into Enchantress, keeping the black dress, swirling it with green, but gaining a wooden broomstick and a dark purple pointy hat. She soared up and into the air, searching for her first victims.

Marinette had been talking to a fan when she heard the screaming. She had designed the clothes for this shoot, and was so excited to see her work out there. She was even more excited because Adrien was one of the models. The bluenette couldn’t wait to see THE Adrien Agreste wearing her designs. It was going to be magical. 

But of course, Hawkmoth had to ruin her perfect day with an akuma. Marinette panicked. She had to get this girl to safety, scouting the area for a good place to hide.

Spotting some bushes a ways away from the photoshoot, she grabbed her by the arm and ran over there. “Here, you’ll be safe here. The heroes will be here soon to fix everything.” 

She left the girl there and went hunting for somewhere to transform, only to be stopped by none other than Chat Noir. He grabbed her arm and began pulling her in the opposite direction.

“Chat, just what do you think you’re doing?”

“I need to get you to safety, princess. Could be a dangerous akuma.”

Marinette looked around at the akuma shooting people with a dark green light and turning them into…. ugly versions of themselves? “It makes you ugly. That’s about the least dangerous thing I can think of at the moment.”

Chat scooped her up and swung his baton over to her house. “Well, I wouldn’t want anything to happen to your beautiful face, now would I? Stay put on your balcony, and don’t come running into danger!” He vaulted off, leaving Marinette to rant to herself, ignoring her avid blush.

“That stupid cat. Now I’ll have to yo-yo myself to the park all over again. Tikki, spots on!”

When Ladybug arrived at the scene, Chat was dodging attacks from Enchantress. She wondered why since her only power was to make people ugly. Seriously, Hawkmoth really needed to up his game.

“Chat!”

“What are you doing? Just let her make you ugly it’s not going to affect anything! You’re wasting your energy constantly dodging.”

“M’lady, I think I forgot to mention - when you get hit by Enchantress over here, the ugliness slowly melts you into disgusting green goop.” He said in between breaths. “If we get hit, that’s game over.”

Ladybug grumbled under her breath, beginning to avoid the akuma’s attacks. Turns out Hawkmoth wasn’t that stupid.  _ Shocker. _ She pounced around the akuma, trying to make out where the akumatized object was hidden. The only thing that seemed out of place was the pointy hat. While the rest of her outfit was green and black, her hat was a dark purple. Perhaps the akuma was hiding in there. On second thought, the broom prop the model was using had changed drastically and become motorized. While Ladybug was planning out how to steal the hat from under her nose, Enchantress shot an attack that went just over her head, making her fall over in surprise.

“M’lady!”

“Chat, I’m fine, focus on Enchantress!” She latched her yoyo onto the akuma’s waist, hoping to catch her off guard, only to be catapulted into a nearby bush. 

Marinette took a deep breath and called out, “Lucky Charm!”

The result was a mirror. Ladybug tried to focus on her surroundings and suddenly the plan slammed into place. Meanwhile, Chat had noticed his lady hiding in the bushes and slowly crept over there. He tapped her on the shoulder.

"M'lady I understand that you're gorgeous and all but now's not the time to really get to know that fact no?"

“Chat! Alright, so, you’re going to sneak up behind her and cataclysm her hat, while I act as the bait and get her to hit me. Then when she shoots a beam, I’ll point this mirror at her and stun her. Got it?” Chat nodded vigorously just waiting for Enchantress to come close enough to steal her hat.

As if she had lost her source of entertainment, Enchantress started to look for Ladybug and Chat Noir. “Ooh a little game of hide and seek I see,” she announced. “Come out come out wherever you are!” She headed to the ground to see if that could help with her search.

Acting as if it were her cue, Ladybug jumped from the bush, hinting at Chat that he should be getting ready too.

“Hey! Come and get me!” Ladybug ran around and around the akuma, trying to anger her enough to shoot at her. “Don't play hard to get dear!” Enchantress bellowed. “This will only end with your demise.” Alas, she cast a green beam at Ladybug and reacting just in time, the hero reflected the shot right back at the witch. But Enchantress was quick on her feet and she dodged the beam as easily as Ladybug did, "Did you really think that I wouldn't see that coming?" 

She laughed and felt a little breeze over her head that she chose to ignore. And then from behind she heard a playful “Did you see this coming though?” Chat said as he shouted “Cataclysm!” and turned her witch hat into ashes. "No!" Enchantress screamed in anguish.

Ladybug laughed. “Time to de-evilize! Bye, bye, little butterfly.” Ladybug walked up to Chat and gave him a fist bump. “Pound it!” They said in synchronization. “I knew I could count on you kitty.” Ladybug boasted.

“Thank you, M’lady. I really must be going now; I’ve got a certain purrincess to check up on.”

As Chat left, Ladybug jolted with realization that the princess he was talking to her about was HER. So she scrambled and headed off to try and beat Chat to her own house. 


	2. bell

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> chat breaks his bell on the way to mari's...  
> guess who fixes it?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> huge thanks to angylle, poppy, and lyra for helping me come up with the ideas for this fic!!  
> bigger thanks for lyra for being an amazing beta!!

Chat Noir was worried. He knew that Ladybug’s cure would have fixed everything, but Marinette was reckless. What if she had left her house and somehow gone to help him? She probably wouldn’t stop at anything if it was to help him. She was so sweet, and something in him felt the need to protect her. At all costs. 

So he sprinted on all fours to her house, hoping against all else that she hadn’t done anything stupid. What he hadn’t accounted for was that in his mad rush, he slipped on the last rooftop and crashed to the ground. The supersuit protected him, but something was off. 

The bell on his suit had broken, straight through the middle. For some reason, he hated it. Adrien supposed the bell was part of his identity as Chat Noir, and without it, he felt somewhat empty. Besides, weren’t the super suits supposed to be  _ unbreakable _ ? 

Chat sighed as he headed over to Marinette’s, bell in hand. He was bad luck, after all. This wouldn’t be the first time it showed. Maybe Marinette could make him feel better. He jumped up and onto her balcony, where she was diligently waiting for him. Was he imagining it or… was she panting? And now that he thought about it, her cheeks were tinted red. She looked tired.

Chat narrowed his eyes in suspicion. “Marinette.”

“Yeeees?”

“Why do you look so tired? Were you out trying to help me with the akuma?”

“Yes, totally, that is what I was doing! Guilty as charged, hahaha.”

“Princess, I can take care of myself. Stop charging into danger. M’lady and I have it covered.” He said, stepping into her room.

Marinette rolled her eyes behind him.  _ Little does he know, I am his lady. Irony is never subtle, is it? _ “So Chat, I’m fine. Any other reason for dropping in? You caught me a bit off guard there.”

“Ah well, I was just checking in on you. Making sure you didn’t do anything stupid. And it seems you weren’t listening to me at all.” He leaned in closer. “I think you are in need of a punishment.”

“And what would that be?” she replied defiantly.

“A chocolate croissant. Now.” Chat said haughtily.

“Fine, fine. I’m going.” Marinette muttered under her breath. “I didn’t know kitties lost their temper when they broke their bells. Stupid cat.”

Adrien’s eyes widened. So she had noticed his broken bell. Was it that obvious? Hopefully he could stick it back on somehow. Maybe Plagg could do something about it? 

“Who’s Plagg?”

“Uh, what? Oh, no one, no one at all. Was I speaking out loud?”

She tried to hold in a snicker. “Yes, yes you were. Aren’t the suits supposed to be invincible? Care to tell me how you managed to break a bell?”

“I may or may not have slipped off a building. Trying to come back here to check on you. Don’t laugh, I don’t think it’s very funny.” He crossed his arms over his chest.

“Very suave, kitty. But yes, I’ll look at your bell. Nothing good old fabric glue can’t fix. And here’s your croissant, while you wait.”

Marinette bent over her desk, sticking her tongue out in concentration. She started by using some glue then took some sandpaper out of a nearby drawer and started to sand the rough edges. _ Lucky I still have some extra sandpaper from my last project, wouldn't want my poor kitty to hurt himself wearing this. _

Chat watched her work, then took the liberty of looking around her room, while eating the delicious croissant. Adrien should really come by the bakery more often; their pastries were  _ so amazing _ , plus he’d get to spend more time with Marinette. 

Looking on her walls, he noticed pictures of her with Alya and Nino, pictures of her with her parents and grandparents, but he also noticed an overwhelming majority of pictures… of him. Not pictures of Chat Noir, the dashing hero. But pictures of Adrien Agreste, the lonely model.

He wondered why she would have so many pictures of him. Adrien was just a boring guy stuck in his house all the time. Never able to leave his house, always ditching his friends for modeling. Marinette was probably just into the  _ Gabriel  _ fashion he wore, to use as inspiration. She wanted to be a fashion designer, if he remembered it correctly. Still, it made him feel loved to know that someone appreciated Adrien, and not just his alter ego Chat Noir. Lost in his thoughts, he startled when Marinette suddenly swiveled around in her chair. 

As if boasting, Marinette said, “Here you are, kitty, good as new. Next time you think of my safety, remember that I can take care of myself. I'm quite handy y'know?”

“I care about you. And excuse me, who wouldn't want someone as handsome, talented, and funny as me to protect them? You should be quite honored.”

Marinette repeated what he said mockingly. _ Ugh this dumb cat, I can't with him sometimes. _ “Thank you for your service oh kind, oh great, powerful and extremely handsome Chat Noir-“

“About time you noticed the power-” His sentence was cut off by the beeping of his ring.

“I was going to say,” she said, annoyed by him interrupting her sentence, “it is way past your bedtime, you don't want bags under those  _ gorgeous _ \- notice the hint of sarcasm there - eyes. Seems like your ring agrees with me.”

“Oh, you flatter me. But unfortunately, it does seem like it is time for me to take my leave. Goodnight princess.” He took her hand and kissed it lightly before leaving. 

“Goodnight kitty.” She said right as he winked at her and disappeared into the night. 


	3. mouse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> mari finds a mouse at home... and let’s just say chat is threatened

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> mignon = cute

The next day Marinette was sleeping in, since yesterday's fight drained a lot of her energy, and it was late in the afternoon when she heard a deafening scream from downstairs. She fell off her loft bed in surprise, falling flat on her face.

The bluenette groaned in pain. There was definitely going to be a bruise there later. But for right now, she had to check up on her parents. As she practically flew down the stairs, Marinette ran through possibilities in her head for what could have happened. An akuma could have blasted into their house, one of her parents could have been akumatized… she shuddered. Running into the dining room, the bluenette panicked when she realized their room was empty. Marinette then rushed to the bakery; the sight of her mother on a stool looking terrified didn't stop her thoughts from running through all the worst cases that could have possibly happened. 

She saw her father calmly searching for something in the store's corner which brought her some form of ease. 

“Maman‽ Papa‽What are you guys doing down here‽ Is everything alright‽ I heard a scream and came here as soon as I heard the scream.” 

Sabine jumped to sit on the countertop. “There's a m-mouse in the bakery!!”

“Honey, relax it's a small mouse. I'll take it out in no time, there's no need to panic.”

“Papa's right mama, it's not going to hurt anyone.”

“There, caught it!” He said holding the small creature victoriously. 

“It's actually kinda cute, can I please, please, please have it; please I've always wanted a pet!” She exclaimed while she tried her best to guilt trip them with her puppy dog eyes. The Multimouse in her was showing. 

Sabrina groaned, falling for her own creation's charms. _ How can I do this to myself? Living with that-that THING.  _ She sighed and eventually let Marinette keep it as long as she never had to see it again. 

Marinette thanked her parents and cheerfully brought the mouse to her room. She immediately then started to draw a cute little outfit she thought up of for her new friend.

While Marinette was making her suit, she heard a knock from the balcony's hatch door. She opens it to see a forced smile. “How's it going, princess?”

“Chat what are you doing here? There's no akuma around is there?”

“Nope, just me today. I was feeling alone, I hope you don't mind me dropping by.” 

“Not at all, but aren't your powers only supposed to be used for emergency cases? Wouldn't Ladybug get mad?”

“What she doesn't know won't hurt her. I hope you understand; I just really need to hang out with someone right now. I can leave if you find me annoying.” He tried to use his kitten eyes to persuade her. Unfortunately Marinette caved.  _ Gosh, how could I fall for something like this aaaand I literally just did. Well, I guess this is what they call karma. _ “Well, wanna play some Mecha after I finish this outfit?” she said resignedly.

“Sure, anything to take up all my time. But, um, princess, I don't want to ruin all the effort you put into that, but I'm not sure that get-up would fit anyone… it's a tad… small.”

“This isn't for a human, silly kitty,” she explained, “it's for my new friend.”

“Friend?”

“Meet Mignon. Isn’t she adorable?” Marinette cooed as she held the mouse up to Chat’s face.

Adrien visibly recoiled from Mignon. Something about her just made him want to let out a ferocious growl. So he did. He growled at Mignon, and inched away from her, keeping his claws in front of his face.

Marinette frowned. “Kitty, what are you doing to my Mignon? You’re scaring her.” She turned away and cuddled the mouse to her chest. 

Chat pouted. “I don’t like her. I want to claw her apart.”

Eyes wide, Marinette turned around and leveled a look at him that would scare away even one of Hawkmoth’s most vicious akumas. It reminded him of Ladybug. “You are not going to touch a hair on her pretty head. Got it?”

Adrien found himself nodding at her harsh tone, even though his instincts told him he would very soon be breaking that promise. Moving away from him, Marinette whimpered and sat on her chaise, turning her head and petting Mignon. When Chat tried to move closer to her, she stuck out her tongue, waving him away. 

“Bad kitty. Shoo, shoo - away from my cute little mouse. You’re just jealous I like her better than you.”

“W-what about our game of Ultimate Mecha Strike? I was looking forward to beating you…”

“In your dreams. And besides, bad kitties don’t get to play with me.”

Crossing his legs and plopping down on the hardwood floor, Chat sulked and put his head in his hands. That rotten mouse. Stealing his princess away from him , as if his day wasn't bad enough. It made sense that Marinette loved mice; she was Multimouse after all. But she was supposed to pick him over a silly little rodent! He was the handsome and brave Chat Noir. Clearly, he had to do something about this mouse stealing all of his princess’s affections. 

Chat quietly got up and crept out of Marinette’s room. Seeing that she didn’t even notice him leaving because of the mouse, Adrien growled again. This time he formulated a plan in his mind. One to get rid of that pesky mouse. 

  
_ Sorry princess _ , he thought as he vaulted away,  _ but be prepared to say goodbye to your precious Mignon.  _


	4. thief

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> chat steals her mouse

Marinette startled awake a while later, not realizing she had dozed off with Mignon in her arms. She rubbed at her eyes tiredly and finally realized that Chat had left. Poor kitty, he was feeling lonely; and then she just shoved him away like that. She felt a pang of regret, imagining her partner sitting on their roof, all alone, hiding from his family. Marinette knew he didn’t have a good relationship with his father… or much of a relationship with him at all. It reminded her of Adrien; how he was never able to come outside with her and the rest of his friends, how he had never experienced so much of the world. She was furious at Gabriel for keeping Adrien away from so much, for not letting him live his life. 

Marinette took a deep breath, and felt her anger slowly ebb away. Instead, she looked at her beautiful Mignon and a surge of protectiveness rushed through her. That dumb cat - however lonely he may be - wanted to, scratch that,  _ needed to _ tear her mouse apart. She would not stand for that.

The bluenette left her mouse bundled up in a cozy blanket, then stood out on her balcony, looking for any signs of Chat Noir. When she was satisfied that he actually had left, she lightly closed the balcony latch and headed downstairs to help her parents in the bakery.

Now that Marinette was finally gone (not that he didn’t enjoy watching her blush while she slept), Chat could finally execute his plan. He lightly jumped down from the roof and crept into her room, quickly climbing down the ladder. Carefully unwrapping the sleeping Mignon, Adrien took the mouse and tiptoed back up the ladder.

“Chat, what the heck do you think you’re doing??” Marinette practically screamed at him. Chat almost dropped her mouse off the loft bed. 

“Nothing, princess, anyways got to go, bye!” He scampered up the hatch and vaulted off the balcony, ignoring Marinette’s screeches. 

“Get back here, you stupid cat! Give me my mouse back!” She clambered up the ladder as fast as she could, surprisingly, without tripping. Leaning over the balcony, she noticed Chat across the street, setting her mouse free in the park. “Noooo! Don’t let her go! I love her!” Chat ignored her protests and calmly watched Mignon scamper away. In a final burst of anguish, and in an attempt to be able to reach her mouse at least one more time, Marinette toppled over the balcony ledge. 

She screamed as her legs gave out beneath her. One of her hands slipped off the ledge and the other twisted painfully, as she gripped onto the ridge tightly. Alerted by the loud scream, Chat turned around in time to notice Marinette hanging off her balcony. Adrien intuitively knew there was nothing he could do to save her. As if in slow-motion, while his heart thudded in his chest, he watched her hand slowly slipping off. 

“Please don’t die, please don’t die, please don’t die…” Chat found himself chanting as he saw his friend tumble over the side of the four floor building. 

Marinette screamed again as her grip gave away. She slid down to the overhang on the window on the side of the building and kept slipping down. The frantic girl did her best to slow down her fall, catching the edge of the gutter with one hand before losing her grip on that too. She held onto the building's siding for a few terrifying seconds and let go. Marinette closed her eyes bracing herself for the impact when she lost her grip on the overhang on the patisserie’s windows. She covered her head as she fell.

“Marinette, it’s okay. I got you.”

The bluenette opened her eyes to stare at Luka, holding her securely in his arms. She then proceeded to stare at the ground, still in shock that nothing happened to her.

“Wha… you saved me. How? When did you even get here? I- thank you!” She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly , on the brink of tears. “I owe you my life, thank you so much.”

Luka laughed. “It was no big deal, Marinette. I saw you dangling off the balcony and rushed over here to catch you. It’s lucky I was in the area.”

“No big deal? I almost died!” Marinette’s squealed , the tears finally started to fall. “But… now that you saved me and all… would you like to come inside? My parents would be happy to feed you some pastries. It's the least I could do after you saved my life.”

He cups her face with one hand and wiped a tear with his thumb. “Of course, I’d love that. But I will be paying for them.”

Chat watched, frozen in place, as Luka and Marinette walked into the bakery, bickering over paying for pastries. He felt a twinge of jealousy. How could she have just forgotten about him so quickly? Was Luka all it took for her to forget about that- that mouse? What about him- whom she was talking to just minutes before? Yes, he had just stolen her mouse… that she loved very much… but he was more important than that!

Adrien scoffed and walked away, with his tail between his legs. Maybe he would come back later that evening for a proper explanation and an apology. When he noticed the half surprised and suspicious looks he was getting from passers-by. Chat extended his baton and vaulted off to the mansion.  _ Back to my lonely room, _ he thought.  _ Maybe at least Plagg will keep me company. _

Meanwhile, Marinette had been telling her parents the story of how she managed to fall off her balcony - without mentioning Chat Noir. She did, however, tell them she had lost her precious mouse - which her mother was overjoyed to hear. 

After giving a good scolding, both Sabine and Tom rushed over and gave Luka a big hug, thanking him for saving their daughter. Tom said heartily, “Luka! As thanks, Sabine and I must give you and your family some pastries to enjoy. Any particular favorites?”

Marinette dragged him away from her parents - pastries in tow - and over to her room. 


	5. dare

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> mari and chat talk it out; feat. kind luka

“Enjoying the pastries?” Marinette asked sweetly.

“Yeah, your parents are awesome bakers. How are you after that fall? Anything broken or hurt?” Luka asked with obvious concern on his face.

“No, I’m totally fine, thanks to you.”

“Then what about that bruise on your face?” Luka asked skeptically.

“Oh, that.” Marinette said sheepishly. “I fell off the loft bed this morning rushing downstairs. Maman was screeching and I was worried.”

“Oh no, was she okay?”

“Yeah, yeah. It was just a mouse.” She laughed.

“The same mouse Chat released into the wild?”

Anger splashed across her face. “Yes, he was apparently very jealous of my precious Mignon, and decided to throw her into the wild. That’s how I slipped off the balcony. Still mad at him.”

“I’m sorry. I’m sure he’ll come around and apologize.” Luka put an arm around her, squeezing her shoulder.

“Yeah, probably. But for now, I have you.” She smiled a genuine smile that brightened Luka’s day.

Luka stayed for a little while longer. The two of them talked and talked, just enjoying each other’s presence. He helped stabilize Marinette after the stress she had been through.

When it was time for Luka to head back home, he stood and smiled. “Marinette, it was a pleasure talking to you today. I hope we can do this again sometime.” He kissed her softly on the cheek and took his leave. 

Blushing profusely, Marinette stood for a while after he had gone, holding her cheek and smiling widely.

Later that night, Chat was circling on Marinette's roof. _ The boy's been there for at least 3 hours now. What could they possibly be doing? And why do I feel this way? Marinette is just a friend who's hanging out with another friend. I need to think up of a way to apologize. _

He stayed that way, circling, until he had to sit down because of dizziness. After God knows how long, Adrien finally saw the blue haired musician leave the bakery carrying two boxes of pastries in hand and a guitar strapped to his back.  _ Typical.  _

He took that as his cue to apologize. He wasn’t ready, his hands were shaking and sweat started forming.  _ No.  _ He clutched his hands and walked in there ready to face the consequences for his actions. 

He opened the hatch that led to her room and peeped through it . Instead of seeing a girl weeping, because she almost died, he saw a girl who was flushed, almost lovesick, holding her cheek as if wanting to keep the feeling of warmth there. 

His mind raced with all the possibilities that could have happened. Before she could see him, he hid. Chat was not going to let her see him like this. He stayed there and tried to calm himself down. When he was closing the wooden panel he felt a stream of warmth running down his cheek. He touched to check what it was. Tears.  _ How could this happen? Why am I crying? She should be, if anything I almost killed her. I'm fine with seeing Marinette…….. with…. some other- _ and before he finished that thought he started to sob. 

Hearing the noises coming from outside, Marinette jolted back to reality and went to check what was happening. _ How long was I just- sitting there? And what is that noise? It's almost as if someone's… crying. _ As she was opening the hatch it immediately slammed closed and she almost fell down. “Who's there‽” She yelled. 

“Just me, princess.” Chat tried to sound as composed as possible, failing in every possible way. 

“Why are you crying? If anything, I should be. Was I not the person you almost killed earlier?” Her anger started to rise.  _ How could he even think of coming here after what he's done‽ And to be crying‽ Just who does he think he is‽  _

“You're right. You should be the one crying. How selfish of me. But since we've established how horrid of a human being I am can I ask how you are?” He tried to keep the tears in this time, prevailing to some extent. “How dare you just appear out of nowhere after stealing my precious little mouse and almost GETTING ME KILLED‽‽ How indecent are you‽ And for you to be crying‽” The floodgate broke and her emotions were all over the place. She had every right to be angry at him. 

Then, she realized,  _ This boy's never had any real friends. He'd been alone all his life; his emotions are still uncontrollable _ . _ Still. Being selfish and almost killing someone doesn't grant him any form of forgiveness from me.  _ Her train of thought was cut off by the next few words that hit her hard. “You're right. You don't deserve someone like me. It's best I stay away from you, I guess. You know what they say about black cats. Heh.” He forced a smile.

As Chat was getting up, he was hastily dragged into Marinette's room. He hit his head on the floor and let out a groan. “There's no way I'm letting you leave without giving you a piece of my mind.” Chat realized that his eyes must’ve been red from the crying and quickly covered his eyes with his arm. 

“What more is there to talk about, I'm a jerk for taking your mouse, it was selfish of me to want your attention all the time and it was criminal of me to steal your mouse. I don't deserve to be your friend. I may be lonely but that doesn't give me any right.” 

His hand may have been covering his face but they couldn't cover the tears from falling. Marinette's anger turned into sadness when the last sentence left his mouth.  _ This is my fault. How could I have left him for a mouse. I know his situation with his family and he even told me he was feeling down. My fall was my fault - if I had just spent time with him, maybe he wouldn't have to have felt bad and done all of this.  _

“Hey,” she leaned in to move his arm and wipe a tear off his cheek, her eyes locked with his, “I shouldn't have left you alone today. I'm sorry.” She leaned in for a hug and stayed there, “I still don't forgive you though, you'll have to earn my trust again.”

“I have no words… how can you forgive me so easily?”

“I know what it's like to be neglected. To have someone you want to be around barely pay attention to you. They do so much to the point that you feel like you're invisible.” Finally pulling away from him, she could feel tears forming. Marinette thought wistfully about her feelings for Adrien, and how he barely even noticed her.

“I’m sorry you had to go through that and I’m sorry for today; you talking to me is already more than I expected, thank you.” He pulled her in and hugged her tightly.  _ I know I'll have to confront her about the feelings I felt earlier , but right now I couldn't care less , I'm just happy having her in my arms.  _

Marinette pushed Chat to arm distance, “Alright, now let's talk about how you’re going to repay me. I don't want to have you do it on your terms and all that. I'd rather have it either benefit me or agonize you.” She smirked. “So how ‘bout a dare. One dare, that’s all I ask.” Chat, who was confused yet somewhat grateful, happily agreed. 

Marinette's lips formed a wide grin across her face, “I hope you're ready for this.” 

“You seemed very prepared…” Chat noticed how quickly she came up with something and it set so many alarms off in his head, but what choice did he have - he almost made the poor girl die. 

“Don’t worry, all you have to do is have dinner with my parents. It's as simple as that; after that you'll be forgiven. However, the dinner will be random so I can call you any day and just say, hey, come over and have dinner, and you'll have no choice but to accept.”

“That seems easy enough-” her laugh froze him in his spot. He realized, _ I almost killed her today and her father seems rather….large to say the least…..but this is the least I can do. Plus he seems like a nice guy, I'm sure I'm overthinking things.  _

“Alright now go home, kitty, you've done enough for one day and I still can't get over what you've done today so don't come for a while, k?” She watched as the cat climbed out and the look of fear on his face was worth her almost dying.

After checking if he was gone, Marinette screamed at the top of her lungs. "HOW DARE THAT CAT COME UP HERE TO MY ROOM AND ACT LIKE EVERYTHING IS OK HE EVEN GOT ME FEELING PITY FOR HIM UGH LUKA ALREADY CALMED ME DOWN WHY'D YOU HAVE TO COME BACK WHY WHY CAN'T I JUST HAVE A NORMAL LIFE I SWEAR THAT DINNER’S GOING TO BE ONE YOU WON'T FORGET!!!" And after another hour of her screeching frantically and abusing her pillows, Marinette eventually fell asleep.


	6. hold my baton

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> viperion and chat do not get along

Life seemed to hate Marinette, or at least that was the only reason she could explain why the day Chat almost kills her is the same day she also had to patrol with him. Not only that but she was also late for patrol - so Chat would have definitely have been there and things would’ve been awkward. She couldn't bear the thought of seeing him, not this soon. She was still very mad at what he’d done. 

She needed someone to help calm her mind down from what had just happened. She needed Viperion, so she snuck past her rendezvous spot with Chat and went to go and ask Luka if he would be willing to go on patrol with her. 

Ladybug jumped down onto Luka’s family’s boat, noticing that he was playing his guitar on the deck. She stood for a minute, listening to the blissful sounds of his music and swaying in place. 

Marinette hesitated, then said gently, “Luka?” 

Luka turned around. “Ladybug? Uh, what are you doing here?”

“I was wondering if you’d like to join me on patrol today. Chat and I… need a bit of a break from each other? I have the snake miraculous…”

“Of course, you can always count on me.” He understood her situation and he was more than happy to help Ladybug. 

The two superheroes leaped across the rooftops, then settled somewhere, away from where she met Chat for patrol, to sit and talk. Marinette didn’t want to cry. Especially not as Ladybug. Ladybug was supposed to be strong and a role model. She couldn’t afford to be akumatized. She didn’t need anyone to know she was vulnerable. So, Ladybug tried to keep it together, to have somewhat of a semblance of normality. But after a while, sitting next to such a caring, compassionate boy, she broke. Viperion held her tightly as she sobbed into his chest. “I’m s-sorry. I-it’s just all catching up to me.”

“It’s okay. I’m always here if you need to talk.” He left it at that, knowing Ladybug wouldn’t want to go into details. Luka let her cry all her emotions out, rubbing her back soothingly.

When her tears had dried, she stood up and pulled Viperion into a tight hug. “Thank you.” She whispered softly. “I really needed that.”

The two finished patrol and ended up walking back to Luka’s home together. Marinette’s emotions had calmed down and she was starting to feel better about herself. Luka always made her feel happier. He was always so sweet and seemed to automatically sense how she was feeling. She smiled as they walked past the bakery, not noticing a lonely kitty who had happened to see them. 

Chat jumped off Marinette’s roof and landed in front of the two. He had come to apologize, again, but properly this time. He couldn’t leave things the way they were, not with such an amazing friend like Marinette and he still had to ask her about what he felt when he saw the girl with Luka. 

And now, his beautiful lady… out patrolling with someone else? And of all people, the same boy who was with Marinette earlier. Who was he to hang around both of them like that? Why are they so close to each other. Whatever was going on, he didn’t like it at all.

“What are you two doing together?” Adrien asked harshly.

“Sorry Chat, I was late for patrol - I had some personal matters to attend to. Then later, when I went to our usual meet up point you weren't there, so I assumed you left. Really sorry. I chose Viperion because I happened to be near his place.” She rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly, trying as hard as she could to sell the lie, and bowed hoping he’d buy it. 

“You could have called me. Why didn't you... m'lady, I was waiting here for you for an hour-” 

“That's enough Chat,” the cat’s sentence was cut off by a deeper, more mature one, "Ladybug’s had a rough day today, please cut her some slack." He put an arm in front of the girl as if protecting her from something, which seemed to push all of Chat’s buttons. Her puffy eyes said everything but for Viperion to act like she needed protection from  _ him _ ? 

“Oh and you just happen to know that, you two seem pretty close. How long have you two even been hanging out, hm? Should I also mention how you were hanging out with Marinette? How much of a playboy are you?” Chat gave him the dirtiest look that he could possibly muster, hoping it would assert some form of dominance.

“Chat stop this before you do anything rash.” 

“I’m sorry, bugaboo, no disrespect or anything, but you have no idea what happened, so I think it’s best you stay out of this.”  __

_ Fine then, if you won't listen to Ladybug then maybe you'll listen to Marinette.  _ As the one sided argument was going on, Ladybug snuck to her balcony and detransformed.  _ Geez, I can hear them from up here. And it seems like Luka has engrossed himself in the argument as well, huh. Joy, it's as if I'm a babysitter not a hero. The things I go through. _

“Why don't we handle this like men then.” 

“What are the two of you doing?” She opened the bakery's door and gave them glares that sent chills down both their spines. 

“Marinette, what are you doing up so late?” Luka's voice seemed to be a familiar sound now. 

“Oh, I don't know, maybe it's because two imbeciles are screaming in front of my house? And how do you know me?” Then he remembered, she doesn't know who he is, at least not in his current form. 

“The cat mentioned what he's done to you and I think it’s just downright immature.” 

“Oh, well, Mister I'm So Mature, what do you know about me to decide that?” 

“CAN YOU BOTH JUST STOP‽ Mister I Get Jealous Over Everything, if you're keeping this fight alive, then you're just as immature as he is, and don't you think you've already caused enough trouble, Chat‽ Why don't you just go home?” 

“Oh yeah‽ Is that it‽ You just want me out of your life‽ You'd rather have this-this fool over here‽” He pointed towards Viperion as if he was some form of a disease, “I saw what you looked like after what I did! I know that he spent at least 4 hours at your place! Do you want me over him‽ If that’s the case, then here, hold my baton and I’ll end things. Right here, right now.” He knew that he exposed the hero’s identity but at this point he didn’t care. Chat headed towards Marinette, who was still by the bakery door, and handed over his baton to her, only for her to extend it and whack it over both of their heads. "

“Both of you go home. Now.” The look in her eyes made it clear that she had had enough for one day.

“Marinette please-” Luka tried to calm her down but little did he know, he only added fuel to the fire. “I SAID GO!” The two boys startled, both dropped their heads and took their separate ways. “I don't want to see this happening ever again or you'll have to deal with Ladybug. Goodnight!”After a few seconds she realized she needed Luka's miraculous back, “Wait! Uh, Viperion, was it? Ladybug said that you could give your miraculous to me, she…. has something to deal with.” Luka chuckled a bit and walked towards her, leaving the cat to stare at them while slowly walking away. And then they were all alone with each other. Again. Marinette grabbed Luka's miraculous after he detransformed then opened the bakery door and slammed it shut. Great. Now, even the only guy she could talk to was gone. She ran upstairs in tears trying to decide what to do now.


End file.
